Eating eggs/tuna every day

Just about every morning I'll have 4 or 5 eggs, as well as a can of tuna during the day. Not only are both foods loaded with protein, but IMO, they taste great. The rest of my diet is super clean and I usually drink 2+ gallons of water daily also.

However, I have some concerns about eating eggs so often due to cholesterol reasons, and tuna because of the mercury content. Regardless, I'll be asking my doctor about this as I'm scheduling an appointment soon (I'm years overdue) and will request to have some bloodwork done, but I wanted to see if anyone here had some input.

Okay on the eggs, but most would suggest only one or two yolks a day and the rest just use the whites.

Tuna - I recently did a lot of searching for the same answer regarding the mercury. Just google "mercury in tuna" and you will find a lot of info. After sifting through it all, I came to the conclusion one can of tuna a week is okay.

But check with your doctor. I'd be curious to hear how he weighs in on the issue. Let us know

You're body can only digest so much protien per hour and recent studies show that it's lower than you think (so says my friend who is a doc. I can get the references if you'd like). So eating a ton of protien at one time isn't necesarrily helping you more. It's not helping your wallet out either. I try and eat nuts throughout the day to keep my body up to speed.

I drink a ton of water too and it is kinda getting to be a problem. I have to go to the bathroom ALL THE TIME. People at work have to think I am crazy. But whatever, my well-functioning kidneys are more important to me than their opinion of the functionings of my bladder.

The eggs are most likely ok, the human body metabolizes the fat and cholesterol in chicken eggs much easier than other forms plus the yolks are filled with micro nutrients which are great for building muscle. You should deff get blood work done to check your cholesterol levels.

However the tuna is where I would be concerned. Chunk Light tuna has the lowest mercury content, Albacore the highest. If you start to notice that your gums are bleeding or you have a metallic taste in your mouth, it is most likely the early signs of mercury poisoning. Mercury can be very dangerous and can cause several forms of degeneration in the body. If you must have tuna choose chunk light and dont consume more than 2-3 cans a week.

"Safe Consumption - The United States Food and Drug Administration set the maximum permissible level at 1 part of methylmercury in a million parts of seafood, or 1 ppm. In 2010, an outside lab for Consumer Reports tested 42 cans and pouches of tuna. The results showed that white albacore tuna averaged 0.427 ppm of mercury and light tuna averaged 0.071 ppm of mercury. The National Resources Defense Council published guidelines, based on your weight, for how much canned tuna can be safely consumed. For example, if you weigh 120 pounds, you should limit yourself to one can of white albacore tuna every 11 days or one can of chunk light tuna every four days. If you weigh 150 or more pounds, you should limit yourself to one can of white albacore tuna every nine days and one can of chunk light tuna every three days."

"Safe Consumption - The United States Food and Drug Administration set the maximum permissible level at 1 part of methylmercury in a million parts of seafood, or 1 ppm. In 2010, an outside lab for Consumer Reports tested 42 cans and pouches of tuna. The results showed that white albacore tuna averaged 0.427 ppm of mercury and light tuna averaged 0.071 ppm of mercury. The National Resources Defense Council published guidelines, based on your weight, for how much canned tuna can be safely consumed. For example, if you weigh 120 pounds, you should limit yourself to one can of white albacore tuna every 11 days or one can of chunk light tuna every four days. If you weigh 150 or more pounds, you should limit yourself to one can of white albacore tuna every nine days and one can of chunk light tuna every three days."

Considering there are several sizes of tuna cans, and the fact that they only tested 42 cans (of unknown size), I will dismiss that report as incorrect.

Eggs aren't necessarily bad, but a cholesterol check will tell you that quickly. I eat 1-2 daily, and ice cream. Working out regularly boosts your HDL (your good cholesterol). But, it can depend on genetics. I stopped working out for three years in NY though kept my diet the same. For the most part, I eat healthy. But, I eat 2-3 pints of ice cream. At the end of the 3 years there, I got my cholesterol check and my total cholesterol was 119, not bad at all. I was told I could eat more ice cream if I wanted, but that was advice I didn't take.

They've been saying eggs that specifically contain Omega-3 fatty acids (not all eggs do) are healthier. But, I just saw this week that if you're a man their is some other health risks. You really are damned if you, damned if you don't sometimes.

As for tuna, yes, I think you are probably eating too much given possible Mercury exposure. You should look into other fish with lower occurrence of Mercury.

What about using fake eggs/egg substitute like Egg Beaters (2 egg equivalent) and 4 egg whites and chuck the yolks down the drain? Add some green chillies or sauteed onions and bell peppers. Maybe even sauteed tofu cubes?

From my family of heart patients/cardiac cripples they are allowed 2 yolks a week and recognize eggs are used in most baked goods. Get your cholesterol levels checked and hope you have a good profile and ratio. If not adjust accordingly. The older ya get the more likely you will/should watch your blood lipid profile.

How about throw 8oz. skim milk over 3 ice cubes, protein powder and 8oz. plain fat free yogurt in a blender. Add a not too ripe banana and handful of frozen berries and make a smoothie?

Things might have changed but the rule of thumb was 35 grams of protein 5-6 x a day (1+ gram per lb. body weight). Body can only digest and absorb 35 grams at a time.

I ate so much F'in cheap tuna over the years, got scared and I gave it up quite a few years ago. Heavy metals and biological entities do not get along well. I occasionally eat fresh tuna steaks buying whole little fish from off the boat.

Those frozen glazed chicken breasts like at Trader Joes are pretty cheap but aren't as convenient as canned tuna. Cook ahead?

As a friends young teenage son told me and his dad this past weekend, "What the fuck do you know" so I may or may not be full of shit. Likely may be lol

regular doctors (IM and FP) receive very little training in med school on nutrition. I love plain tuna in water too. scrambled eggs with tuna mixed in is one of my favorite dishes. I dont eat tuna every day though. If you must have your fish outa can fix every day try sardines. They are very low on the food chain and thus contain very little mercury compared to bigger fish like tuna. if you are worried about mercury you can try supplementing with n-acetyl-l-cysteine, help with heavy metal removal from your tissues. You should of course research this supplement before taking it and talking to a good ND if available in your area would also be a good idea.

Okay now that i got that outta way, Lol!Eating eggs daily i think youre good. But for tuna i would just limit to one or two servings a week. The mercury. Or take those omega 3 fish oil pills instead. Of course, ask the Doc.

Seems that everyone is in agreement here regarding the mercury content of tuna, and I agree. Are you choosing tuna for budgetary reasons? Unfortunately, you run the risk of exposing your body to various unwelcome guests when eating anything but all-natural, organic protein sources. These sources can be quite expensive especially for athletes who require higher-than-normal protein sources. You could buy chicken breasts at a bit more expensive rate, get a bit less protein from each serving, then substitute other protein sources, i.e., raw almonds, organic greek yogurt, cottage cheese, whole grains, low/no-fat organic milk, natural peanut butter, lentils, quinoa, etc.

The eggs, I believe, are fine. The yolks are full of nutrients, and the cholesterol isn't as bad as most people think. How could something that becomes a nutrient source for a new life be that bad, right?

I eat tuna a lot because I like the taste and it's convenient...I can eat a sandwich anywhere, whereas I don't have the option to cook/reheat chicken at times. I'm still going to talk to a doctor about my diet, but in the meantime I'll be cutting back on my tuna intake, and probably hard boiling my eggs from time to time to keep the whites separate. Thanks again guys.